this is 9 news now. >> put your count down clock on ebay. congress did not get it done and the country goes over the fiscal cliff in less th an hour but there is a deal in the works that could stop tax cuts, though it has to pass the house of congress in the next day and

a half. it is uncertain. gary joins us now. >> reporter: taxes are going up for most workers because none of the deals being talked about stop taxes going up. for a working making $50,000 a year, that is a thousand dollars increase in your with holding. the income tax rates, there is a agreement to stop those for going up for 99%. there is a agreement to stop the big spending cuts from kicking in by kicking the can down the road a couple months. right now on the hill, outside the senate, they are waiting for word from vice president joe biden who is briefing the caucus on the deal that he reached with senate leaders and with the republican majority leader. they said a few moments ago that there will be a vote sometime before midnight tonight, no guarantee it will

pass. whatever happens we are going over that cliff. >> happy new year. >> reporter: vice president joe biden met with democrats after 9:18 p.m. monday night to brief them on a agreement that would raise tax rates on individuals making more than $400,000 and couples making more than $450. the deal allows tax cults to expire -- cuts to expire. >> extend unemployment insurance to 2 million americans who are actively looking for a job. >> reporter: state tax rates to 40 from 35%. the deal delays sequestration, the big spending cuts by 2 months. the delay paid for half in those new taxes, half in smaller spending cuts, between

defense and non-defense. at this very moment we are waiting to see what happens. the agreement we are talking about is among senate leaders only. no guarantee it will pass the senate where some are angry the president caved. and there is no guarantee it will pass the house which won't come back till tomorrow. we just don't know. to repeat what we know is this, your with holding is going up. look for less money in your january tax rates. >> this is an enact science. how much longer could this go on? how much longer could we wait for the house to vote? >> reporter: we are going over the cliff. they can do some stuff so that big pay tax rate increases won't kick in. they kicked it down a couple months. we will be talking about this

for weeks, months. >> thank you. despite the uncertainty over the fiscal cliff stocks rallied this year. that could change on wednesday depending on what happens tomorrow. the dow is up 166 to 13,104. while there is still no deal on the fiscal cliff lawmakers reached an agreement to keep milk prices from going up. we are waiting on the house to vote on it. if they don't do it before midnight it defaults back to a 1949 statute. the government would be forced to buy milk at twice today's price. the united states hit its debt limit today, borrowing $16.4 trillion. the treasury department is taking measures to buy time

till february. after that the treasury will not be able to pay bills in full and own time setting the stage for another fight on capitol hill. sad new year's eve for a family and the entire prince william county police departmentarve an officer a-- department after an officer was killed. >> reporter: chris yung was on his way to a call when this crash happened. >> really sad. and really hard for our families. the kids played together. chris was already running around playing with the kids. always had a smile on the face. just a great guy. >> reporter: friends remember officer chris yung. the married father of three was a motorcycle officer on his way

to a crash driving around 2:00 p.m. new year's eve. when police say this now charged minivan made a turn in front of him, killing him in the line of duty. the crash was fiery, leaving no chance for survival. his death will be felt by many. his former neighbor. >> a great neighbor. willing to do anything. help you if you needed anything. just, yeah, a great guy. >> the chief is asking for everyone's thoughts and prayers tonight as the department comes to loss with the develops of the loss -- grips grips of the loss. firefighter killed last week in new york was laid to rest today. he was shot last monday while responding to a fire in new york. hundreds of family, friends and

colleagues said good-bye tonight. he set his house on fire as a trap. a funeral was held today for the man pushed in front of a new york city subway train. he died thursday. a woman pushed him on to the tracks because she thought he was hindu or muslim. now to the deadly attack in libya. the state department made a grievous mistake by keeping the mission open. inadequate security. they targeted the mission in september. killing u.s. ambassador chris stevens and three others. secretary of state hillary clinton will spend new year's eve in a hospital after doctors

discovered a blood clot. more on her condition and treatment. >> reporter: secretary of state hillary clinton has a blood clot behind her right ear between her brain and skull. doctors say it did not result in a stroke. >> this is something that is not effecting the brain tissue. having said that if the clot obstructed blood from draining out of her brain her brain would swell. >> reporter: it is key to disablize the clot. >> prevents the clot from getting larger. >> reporter: she suffered a concussion after she fell. she is being monitored for other conditions. >> sometimes when people have a concussion they have bad headaches. they can have dizziness. >> reporter: depending on the severity, systems could last a couple weeks. doctors say she is in good spirits, engaging with family

and staff and making excellent progress. cbs news, los angeles. >> some risk factors include bed rest, sitting for long periods of time, pregnancy and smoking. in 50 minutes good-bye to 2012 and ring in 2013. a live look at times square. a million people are braving freezing temperatures. edward lawrence is there. >> reporter: this is the party watched all over the world and these are the people who are there. >> times square. my mom watching tv in china. >> reporter: a million people from all around the world are in times square to watch the crystal ball drop and welcome in 2013. >> when it lights up with the crystals we will go -- [ screams ]

>> reporter: revelers had to pass through thousands of extra police officers. some people getting inspected multiple times. >> the security is really good. we are so safe. >> reporter: they are braving freezing temperatures and may get rain or snow before the night is out. some of these people have been here for more than 12 hours. no food, no bath rooms. all just to see the ball drop. it is no matter for those who see this as a once in a life time opportunity. >> bucket list. we are going to get in line and get in and stay. we are not quitting. [ music playing ] >> reporter: live musical performances helped with the staying power. >> so much more live intainment. entertainment. >> reporter: a billion people will watch the ball drop on television. edward lawrence, cbs news new

york. one of the biggest parties in washington. a family, friendly, non-alcohol affair. live music, dancing and other activities. including here at the center. police in the d.c. area will be out this new year's eve. looking for drunk drivers. if you had too much to drink don't put your life or someone else's life at risk. for a safe ride call 1(800)###- #200-taxies. fairs under $30 a free. lot of people made a sober decision to donate to charity. all day and night car after car dropped off donations at the salvation army. many people donating before the end of the year for tax purposes. others donating to make room for the new stuff. >> tremendous turn out with donations. again, you know, the salvation army does -- does a lot across,

you know, all over the world so people feel comfortable coming here with donations and we take good care of the stuff. >> salvation army estimates that 1700 cars came by today alone. starting tomorrow people in maryland will have the right to marry whoever they want. gays and lesbians started getting their marriage licenses earlier this month. all right. i am erica. it is pleasant out here. if you are watching the fire works. we will have nice conditions. wake up temperatures, upper 20s to low 30s. not too bad. a chance of showers. more about it coming up. >> if you haven't done it yet, download the new 9 news now

ipad app, news, hd video and live weather maps. just like our weather team uses. free in the app store and available for kindle fire and android tablets. stay with us. we will be right back.

welcome back.

the count down continues to 2013. another live look at times square in new york city. more than a million people are expected to gather there tonight as they watch the ball drop to usher in the new year. [ music playing ] and across the pond, the city of london issued in the new year with a real bang. 2013 will be bigger as prince william and kate middleton welcome a new baby. also fire works in berlin. a million people gathered it there to -- gathered there to watch the fire works. people here in the u.s. are waiting to pop the bubbly. don't shoot the cork out so it flies across the room. keep a good grip on the cork.

slowly turn the bottle and ease the cork out. corks can shoot out at speeds up to 50 miles per hour and cause serious damage to people's eyes. >> these bottles are under pressure. if it gets away you can put an eye out. >> the eyeball is not compressible and they tear and it causes damage. >> he said he sees more damage from fists and beer bottles on new year's eve than from corks. is washington a sports town again? last night's big win for the redskins. as andrea mccarren reports, it has been a real emotional roller coaster. >> reporter: what do you think of the redskins? >> they win. >> hail to the redskins! >> reporter: washington can

hardly contain its excitement. >> rg3. i mean, the guy is phenomenal. >> rg3. >> rg3. >> rg3. >> reporter: fueled by a thrilling redskins victory. a factory is cranking out thousands of t-shirts with the words the beast in the east. champions, 2012. >> fabulous to see the burgundy and gold, making the catches and the plays and the hits, interceptions. the best. >> reporter: in a city, washington has become a sports town. >> awesome. long time coming. >> reporter: hard to believe in 2004 washington didn't even with a baseball team. now with bryce harper and steven strasburg, the nats clinched the best record in major league baseball. >> they surprised everybody.

took it to the playoffs. i wasn't expecting that at all. >> reporter: washington capitals have its fans too. even as the team remains benched because of the nhl lock out. >> it is hearting my heart. >> reason for optimism for the other washington team, the wizards. john wall will be back in january playing for the first time with another great young player, bradley beal. who knows, maybe even a wizards fan's dreams can come true. andrea mccarren, 9 news now. >> that is big dreaming. d.c. united made it to the major league soccer playoffs for the first time since 2007. but lost in the championship. washington is indeed once again a big sports town. one of the biggest fans is here. >> football and baseball are my two sports. >> we are in the middle of our

tweet spot. >> absolutely. let's hope the redskins don't fall short the way the nats did. we will see what happens. that is yet to come. but we have decent weather leading up to that game and even into game time. right now, looking at weather cam. the national mall. things are okay. 39 degrees. cloudy skies. dew point is 28. earlier today we had showers and they evaporated before hitting the ground. it moistens up the atmosphere. now it is not as bone dry as it was earlier on today. weather headlines, cloudy and dry tonight. showers for new year's day, though. rain, maybe a wet snowflake. no accumulation. too mild for snow. any snow that falls will melt. right now it is, well, too farm for snow. 40 degrees in hagerstown. chillier here, where we had

breaks in the cloud cover. we will see a couple breaks over night tonight. you can see the breaks on the slopes of the mountains in west virginia, up the appellations. more showers press towards us from the south and west as we head through over night. you can see most of the moisture dissipates. will this muss us to the -- miss us to the south. you can see how the moisture is 100-miles to the south or even further than that. over night tonight sprinkle. for the most part cloudy skies. 29-34 over night lows. morning hours, it will be cloudy with a quick shower. not expecting anything big here. temperatures in the 30wise winds at 5-10 miles per hour. -- 30s with winds 5-10 miles per hour. clouds in the atmosphere for

the most part. highs between 37-42 degrees. winds become 5-10 miles per hour. and we keep it green for the next three days. all green. chance of a quick rain shower. and wednesday breezy and cool, 38 degrees. you will feel the difference in the atmosphere wednesday. thursday looks good. partly cloudy skies with a high of 40. and temperatures remain at or below normal for the next several days. high of 40 degrees. both days on the weekend. that means another chilly redskins game, however it won't be as cold. it was cold, wasn't it yesterday? >> luckily i was at home watching that game. cold. >> very chilly. redskins. what do you say? fans are ready to ring out the old and ring in the new. the new nfc champions. replacing the team from last year. they set their sites on seattle. a familiar foe. stay with us.

and now 9 sports. >> the last time the redskins were in the playoffs was 2007 when they rallied after shawn

tailor's death. their opponent then is the same for this weekend, the seahawks. instead of traveling to washington state they will host the seahawks. two record setting quarterbacks and the teams are on the roll too. the skins won 7 straight. seattle won 5 in a row. >> a lot of respect for them. everybody can see how they have been playing. excellent in offense and defense. run the football. score a lot of points. so it is a very well coached, disciplined team. been playing great. >> if you hope to go to the game, good luck. all playoff tickets are sold out. some could turn up later. a quick check show plenty of availability. it will be a monster day around the area. the ravens host the colts sunday at 1:00 p.m. right here on wusa 9. seahawks

at redskins, 4:30 p.m. later in the game. game on over time after 9 news now at 11:00 p.m. our u.s.a. high school sports game of the week poll. several good games to choose from. silver springs. fairfax, south lake. go to www.wusa9.com to vote. we will announce the winner thursday night. what better way to ring in the new year than with count downs. music, movies, stories in the d.c. area. sports. is there any doubt what the number one moment could be? you guessed it. last night's huge win or go home win by the redskins for their first nfc east title in 13 years. so many things made the moment special. at the hands of the biggest rivals, the cowboys, two awesome rookies who came through. >> no arguing with that one.

thank you. stay with us. we will be right back.

one more look at the comlicated fiscal cliff negotiations. >> reporter: vice president joevice president joe biden was -- joe vice president joe biden was briefing. here is joe biden on expectations a moment ago. >> two things you shouldn't do, shouldn't predict how the senate will vote, and number two, shouldn't predict how the house will vote. i feel very, very good. i think we will get a good vote

tonight. >> reporter: senate vote in a matter of moments. no idea what will happen. >> do you think this is the beginning of the end or the end of the beginning? >> reporter: absolutely. >> well said. thank you for watching. we are always on www.wusa9.com. letterman is next. have a great night and a very happy new years.